West Ham United star Dimitri Payet ranks highest in Europe in key area - Arsenal duo make top 5

The former Marseille man has made a storming start to life in England.

West Ham midfielder Dimitri Payet ranks first across Europe's top five leagues for key passes made so far this season.

The Frenchman - who joined from Marseille in June for around £10 million, according to BBC Sport - has set the Premier League alight and paid no mind to the usual settling in period afforded to foreign signings.

The 28-year old has grabbed four goals and three assists in his first eight league outings and has been the main catalyst for the Hammers' excellent start to the campaign.

Team

Key Passes

Long

Short

Mins played

Dimitri Payet

West Ham

33

11

22

718

Mesut Ozil

Arsenal

31

4

27

587

Wahbi Khazri

Bordeaux

30

4

26

620

Santi Cazorla

Arsenal

29

3

26

709

Sofiane Boufal

Lille

29

7

22

678

Payet leads the charge with 33 key passes in his 718 minutes of game time and interestingly has made a much higher proportion of long-range key passes than his rivals.

One third of his total amount have been long-range, giving an indication of West Ham's preferred style of play, with a keen emphasis on quick, counter-attacking football.

Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil comes closest to matching the West Ham man, with 31 key passes made in total - albeit in 131 less minutes on the pitch.

Fellow Gunners star Santi Cazorla comes in at fourth, having made 29 key passes in 709 minutes of football this season and the table is rounded out by Ligue 1 talents Wahbi Khazri (30 key passes) and Sofiane Boufal (29 key passes).